March 8, 2016

The woman who lit a hatchling gopher tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus) on fire, threw it on the ground and finally stomped it to death and then posted a video on social media showing the torture and death, has pleaded guilty to cruelty to animals and was sentenced to 32 days in jail. Jennifer Emoke Greene was previously ruled incompetent to stand trial twice, delaying justice for the little tortoise.

Florida Fish and wildlife conservation commission

The screengrab shown here shows the tortoise being doused with lighter fluid and then set on fire.

Greene, along with then 15-year-old Danielle Dionne were arrested back in 2014 after an animal rights group saw the video on Facebook, and contacted Florida officials about the video, according to Jacksonville.com.

Here is what was said on the video, which has since been removed from the social media site:

"Let's light his head on fire."
"Burn baby, burn baby."

"Now you're scared of us, huh?"

"Ugh, I just want him to die.

The video apparently got more than 125,000 views on the social media site before it was taken down, and Gina Greisen, president of the Nevada Voters for Animals activist group who initiated the contact with Florida officials, was upset that Greene only received 32 days for the torture and killing of the threatened species.

“I’m extremely disappointed that it is only 32 days,” she told Jacksonville.com. “That video has shocked and horrified me as much as any other video I have seen investigating cruelty. It went viral on my page — the entire world saw that video and was so horrified and shocked at that kind of barbaric cruelty.”